Predictive auto-complete text entry is a function implemented in some text handling tools to automatically complete the text of a word after only a limited amount of text entry, as little as 1 to 3 keystrokes in some cases. Predictive auto-complete text entry tools save the user time by having the user enter fewer keystrokes in order to enter a full word. Such tools are particularly valuable on mobile devices that are used to send text messages (e.g., Short Message Service (SMS) messages, etc.), electronic mail, or other text intensive applications, particularly considering the relatively small keyboard featured on mobile devices. Predictive auto-complete text entry may also be referred to as “word completion.” Predictive auto-complete text entry improves efficiency of text entry (i.e. improves speed and reduces errors) by reducing the number of characters that must be entered.
Manual handwritten text entry on a digital surface is another method for inputting text to applications. Handwritten text entry is the process of accepting digitized writing made by the user (typically with a stylus or finger on a touch sensitive screen) and performing handwriting recognition on the digitized writing (sometimes called “digital ink”) to determine the text characters that were input. Handwritten text entry may be desired under certain circumstances. For example, rather than “hunt and peck” on the small keyboard of a mobile device, a user may find it easier to write on a touch screen with a stylus, using a greater area of the touch screen to do so. Likewise, some users may have aesthetic or nostalgic attachments to handwriting versus typing. Handwritten text entry can, however, be a tiring and error prone process. Even people who prefer to write by hand may not do so with regularity, while others may not have engaged in significant handwriting in a long time.